Hat retainer



July 19, 1938. A. RITTENER. BORN COLLINS 2,124,471

HAT RETAINER Filed March 26, 1 957 va for Patented July 19, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Application March 26, 1937, Serial No. 133,240 In France March 12, 1937 1 Claim.

means of a headhole, more or less rigid, which is pulled down to the level of the temples so that the hat covers the entire head. However, some ladies hats are simply placed on the hair and for securing them on the head, it has been necessary up to now to use a ribbon, an elastic or other band which passes under the chin or behind the chignon.

The present invention more particularly concerns this kind of head-gear too narrow or not shaped for surrounding the head, and it procures this remarkable advantage of avoiding the necessity of using an apparent band, ribbon or the like.

For that purpose, the hat is provided with one or more springs having a curvature or camber suiiiciently pronounced so that it is necessary to stretch said springs for placing the hat on the head, whereupon they are allowed to fit, by their own resiliency, on the top of the head, from the forehead to the occiput, or from one temple to the other. By this means the'hat is securely held in position whilst appearing to be simply placed on the hair.

The spring or springs can be sewn or attached in any other manner to the inner face of the crown of the hat so as to be entirely invisible; on the other hand, they can be constituted by thin steel ribbons, such as springs of clockworks for instance, so that they do not produce any uncomfortable thickness.

Their resiliency has moreover for effect to preserve for the crown of the hat, when the latter is placed on the head, the exact required curvature, so that no distortion upon use is to be feared; this latter advantage obviously concerns all kinds of hats the crown of which is made of felt, fabric or other distortable material.

The accompanying drawing, illustrating by way of example only, a form of carrying out the subject-matter of the invention, will allow the principle of the latter and its practical advantages to be clearly understood.

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section of a hat held on the head by means of a single spring.

Fig. 2 is an underside plan view thereof.

Fig. 3 is an elevation showing the same hat removed from the head and left to the action of said spring.

I designates the crown of a hat having a width too reduced for surrounding the head, but sufii- (Cl. 132-59) Hats usually keep in place on the head by,

ciently long for extending from the forehead to the nape of the neck. 7

According to the invention, a flat spring 2 is attached by stitches to the inner wall of the crown of the hat throughout the length of said 5 crown, according to its median line. This spring is cut for instance from a spiral spring of a clockwork and tends, consequently, to resume the shape of a turn when it is left to itself; it results therefrom that the hat removed from the head 10 rolls up, as far as its suppleness allows it, for instance as indicated in Fig. 3.

When the hat is placed on the head, it is stretched for applying its ends for instance on the forehead and on the nape of the neck, so 15 that the spring is sufficiently strained for exerting against these diametrally opposed regions the pressure necessary for safely and correctly holding the hat in position, even in windy weather.

Owing to the curvature and flexibility of the 20 spring, this pressure is moreover distributed on a relatively large surface so that it is not in any way uncomfortable.

It is to be understood that instead of flat springs, use can be made of springs having any 25 cross section and that a plurality ofsprings can be arranged on one and the same hat, either parallel to each other, or according to a cross, or in any other suitable manner, in order to exert, owing to their previous cambering, sufiicient 30 pressures at two or more points of the periphery of the head.

The previous camber of the springs will be adjusted, by hand or mechanically, according to the particular shape of each hat. 35

In some cases, the ends of the spring or springs, or one of them, can extend beyond the edges of the crown of the hat, provided they are concealed by feathers, ribbons, or the like, or that they form themselves a part of the ornamental trim- 40 mmg.

The springs can be encased in a ribbon or otherwise.

' I claim:

In a device for holding a hat in position on 45 the head, the combination of the crown of a supple hat with a spiral spring connected to said crown approximately throughout its length and in a substantially median plane of said crown, said spring being adapted to 'roll up the entire 50 hat when it is removed from the head.

AGNES RITTENER, BORN COLLINS. 

